Professor
Tonio Buonassisi
Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Interests
- Solar energy conversion: high-efficiency materials and devices
- Improved materials utilization
- Novel manufacturing technologies
Professor Buonassisi News + Media
Solar energy farms could offer second life for electric vehicle batteries
A new study by Professor Tonio Buonassisi shows that these electric vehicle batteries could have a useful and profitable second life as backup storage for grid-scale solar photovoltaic installations.
Researchers develop a roadmap for growth of new solar cells
Research conducted by Professor Tonio Buonassisi shows that starting with higher-value niche markets and then expanding could help perovskite-based solar panels become competitive with silicon.
Covid-19 shutdown led to increased solar power output
As the air cleared after lockdowns, solar installations in Delhi produced 8 percent more power, a new study from Professor Tonio Buonassisi and research scientist Ian Marius Peters shows.
Faculty Details
Education
-
2001
UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME
B.S., Applied Physics -
2006
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-BERKELEY
Ph.D., Applied Science & Technology
Research Interests
- applied machine learning, materials for sustainability
Bio
"Tonio Buonassisi is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He is pioneering the application of artificial intelligence to develop new materials for societally beneficial applications. His research in solar photovoltaics and technoeconomic analysis assisted technology developments in dozens of companies, earning him a US Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), a National Science Foundation CAREER Award, and a Google Faculty Award. He founded the MIT PVLab and co-founded the Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems in Boston USA. A recipient of the prestigious MIT Everett Moore Baker Memorial Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, his passion for education is evidenced by the >73k views of his OpenCourseware/YouTube PV lectures series, and a recent YouTube video series focused on the application of AI to materials research, entitled “Accelerated Materials Development for Manufacturing.”
Honors + Awards
- 2016 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE)
- 2015 Google Faculty Award
- 2015 Everett Moore Baker Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching (MIT teaching award selected entirely by undergraduates).
- 2012 CAREER Award, National Science Foundation
- 2012 BOSCH Energy Research Network Award
- 2010 MIT-Deshpande Innovation Grant
- 2005 European Materials Research Society (E-MRS) Young Scientist Presentation Award
- 2004 German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Graduate Research Fellowship